whats a word that means something done only for the shock value

[stitchtime]

so how would you describe someone who, for example, showed you lots of gorey stuff, just to get a kick out of it. or films full of blood and gore there just for the sake of the blood and gore, rather than to develop the plot line.

gratuitous

thank you

sensationalist?

I dunno whether there's a specific word for it. You could say that something is 'sensationalist', but that has more to do with provoking excitement than disgust or shock. 'Lurid' means 'shocking or sensational' (you can't really use it about people - it's more 'that's a lurid description'). Or you could stick with good old 'obscene' ('offensive or disgusting by accepted standards of morality and decency'.)

Mark Kermode (the film reviewer) calls the kinds of film you're describing 'torture porn'. Some people seem to use 'pornographic' in this way now - to describe something that is exploitative and without artistic value, not necessarily to do with sex.

aahhh, my lovely mumsnetters.

x-posts with thready

like the term 'food porn' for the marks ads?

i am writing an essay on modern art not being understood easily by the masses. and was looking for some way of describing the bodyworks exhibition.

Dunno - I think 'food porn' is making a more direct comparison between the licky/sucky/sticky/ejaculating aspects of sex and M+S chocolate puddings, whereas calling something like a horror film 'pornographic' is more to do with excess, or exploitativeness (which might not be what you want to say about modern art. About which I know nuffing.)

its okie, i dont know anything about modern art either. which is why the essay is so hard to write.

exhibitionist?

I think "gratuitous" nailed it.